"Welcome to the Prime Institute of Music, Ms. Kida." The headmaster handed the necessary papers to Hikari. She had just been admitted to the biggest music academy in Japan. Hikari smiled as she held the papers in her hands. This was the moment she was hoping for. She was happy but not because she was admitted to the institute, but because she could finally find Black Moon. An artist who rose to fame a few years ago. An artist that sparked Hikari's love for music once more. She felt as if they were one and the same and she just had to find him. She left the room with a smile on her face.
"She doesn't speak yet she can make lyrics as beautiful and as meaningful as those who can. I'm curious to see how she handles being in this institute." The headmaster muttered to himself. He's seen a lot of exceptional people being enrolled in the institute but never has he seen someone quite like Hikari. He described her as a dying flame that's fighting to stay lit. He thought about her potential and how he wanted to nurture it and make her grow as a talented songwriter. However, he had to see how she could make a difference first.
Hikari walked out of the headmaster's office and took her luggage that was waiting for her by the office doors. She just got off the plane from her hometown and went directly to the academy to see the headmaster upon his request. The headmaster's office was located at the center of the Institute. Her eyes wandered around the Institute as she tried to take in the excitement that was building up inside her. As she was walking, she didn't notice a student that was walking towards her. They collided and Hikari fell to the ground.
"Watch it!" The boy said. Hikari looked up immediately when she heard his voice. Could it be? Hikari thought to herself. Their eyes met and Hikari knew deep down that he was the one she was looking for. The boy looked at her, annoyed. He was clutching his guitar like it was a baby.
"Tch! Can you watch where you're going?" He yelled. Before Hikari could interject, two other boys arrived.
"You're already angry this early in the morning." The other boy said as he was yawning. The two boys looked at Hikari, who was still on the floor.
"Hey, did you bump into this girl? You could've helped her up." The other boy said. He looked at Hikari and smiled, as he offered his hand to her. Hikari took it and he pulled her up. She was still looking at the boy who bumped into him.
"Aren't you going to say sorry?" The boy yelled. Hikari was surprised. Maybe he's not the one I was looking for. She thought. She knelt back down to grab her fallen papers, making sure nothing was missing. Afterwards, she got up and fumbled to get a pen from her purse. She scribbled something on the back of one of her papers and showed it to the boy.
"I'm sorry." One of them read. They looked at Hikari and then back at the boy.
"She can't speak." One of the boys remarked. Hikari lowered her head and then grabbed her suitcase. None of the boys said anything until Hikari was out of sight.
"You're being a brat first thing in the morning and you were mean to a mute girl too." One of the boys remarked.
"Shut up!" The boy answered.
"Chill out, Kuroko. Can't you be a tad bit nicer to other people?" One of the boys said. Kuroko clicked his tongue before walking away. As he passed the spot where Hikari fell, he noticed and ID card on the floor. He bent down to pick it up and noticed that it was hers.
"Kida Hikari." He read out loud. Without saying anything to his friends, he put the ID card in his pocket and continued on his way.
"I sometimes wonder why we're even friends with Kuroko. Do you think that way, Gin?" Gin looked at Katsumi and shook his head.
"Kuroko is nice, he just doesn't want to admit it." Gin answered. Katsumi smiled at him before walking away.
After Hikari left, she went out of the Institute to call a taxi. She was on her way to the apartment that she was renting out since she wasn't able to get a dorm room in the Institute. The moment she stepped inside the taxi, she noticed that her ID was gone. She tried checking her bag but there was no ID there. She thought she lost it when she was taking a walk around the campus. Hikari decided to just get a new one tomorrow. When she arrived at the apartment building, she noticed that there were a lot of people in the lobby. Her heart started pounding and she immediately ran to the elevator. Hikari didn't like to be surrounded by a lot of people. Her anxiety builds up and sometimes she can't take it.
When she arrived at her apartment door, she unlocked it and went inside. It was a small apartment that had enough space for one person. She put her suitcase by the closet and she started to put her clothes one by one. At the very bottom of her suitcase was where her lyric book was. She took it out and placed it on the bedside table.
When Hikari couldn't sleep, she would write lyrics until she would get tired and eventually falls asleep. Writing music was her way of dealing with the trauma that was constantly on her mind. Hikari's life was not easy. From the moment she was born, she was regarded as the least favorite child. She was the smartest and had the most talent but she was the middle child and she wasn't exactly her parents' favorite.
When she was a kid, she got into an argument with her older sister and instead of both of them getting scolded, she was the only one who was punished. Even though it wasn't her fault. She learned how to hold her tongue when it came to family arguments. She learned how to stay in the shadow and let her siblings take the glory. Her life wasn't easy and when she was in high school, she was bullied by her older sister and was almost beaten to death by their father. Ever since then, Hikari stopped talking. Her mother agreed to send her out to a faraway city and let her study on her own. And that's how Hikari ended up at the Prime Institute of Music.
After arranging her stuff inside the closet, she went back to her bed and grabbed the lyric book on the bedside table. With a pen in hand, Hikari wrote about her feelings. When she had the time, she would also turn her lyrics into songs. Songs that only she knew and only she could play. Nobody knows that she could speak, let alone sing. It was a secret deep within her and it was the only solace in her empty world.
The next day, Hikari went straight to the admissions office to get another ID card. Afterwards, she was on her way to her first class. While walking around the school to look for her building, she didn't notice Gio and Katsumi behind her. They saw her by the admissions office and decided to follow her.
"Why are we following her again?" Gio asked Katsumi, who was busy playing detective. Katsumi pulled down Gio by his collar.
"Shhh… Don't talk so loud. She'll hear us." Katsumi whispered. Gio rolled his eyes and pulled himself away from Katsumi's grip. Hikari was on her way to the G# building where lyricists are mainly found.
"Oh, she's a lyricist, huh?" Katsumi muttered. Much to Hikari's knowledge, The Prime Institute of Music conducts activities for students. But not by clubs but by bands. Students can group together to create a band. To become a functional band that would be recognized by the administration, one must have a lyricist in their group. The lyricist can play any instruments just as long as there is someone who is qualified to write music for the band. Katsumi knew exactly what he wanted to do.
"Gio, let's let her join our band." He suggested. Gio looked at Katsumi with an unimpressed expression.
"You don't even know if she can write good lyrics or not." Gio answered. Katsumi shook his head and looked to Hikari's direction.
"I can feel it in my bones, Gio. She's the one we need." He answered. Gio looked at how serious Katsumi was and for once, he gave in.
"Fine, let's tell the others." He said. Gio and Katsumi went back to their rehearsal room. Hikari, on the other hand, entered her classroom. There weren't a lot of people in her class which made her anxiety tone down. She sat down at the very back where no one could see her. The professor walked in momentarily.
"Alright everyone! Take your seats. I was informed that we will be having a new student in our class. Ms… Kida?" She said. Hikari slowly raised her hand. The teacher noticed and called out to her.
"Ah yes, Ms. Kida. Please come here and introduce yourself." She said. Hikari's anxiety shot up. Her palm started sweating and she was reluctant about standing. All eyes were on her and she felt as if she was being judged. She got so scared that she wanted to leave. Just then, the headmaster entered the room.
"Ah, headmaster. To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?" The professor asked. The headmaster cleared his throat.
"Ms. Kanna, I'm here to inform you about the new student that just entered today." He looked at Hikari as if he was signalling for her to stand up. to which Hikari obliged.
"This is Ms. Kida Hikari. She's mute and cannot speak so I hope you'll treat her well. She may not be able to speak but she can still write. Her abilities are worth nurturing. That is all. You may continue your class, Ms. Kanna." The headmaster said. Ms. Kanna smiled at the headmaster before he left.
When he was gone, he turned to Hikari who just sat down.
"Hi Ms. Kida. I'm Professor Kanna. If you have any questions or you need assistance with anything, please don't hesitate to come to me." She said. Hikari nodded and turned her attention back to class. Professor Kanna continued with her lesson on meaningful lyric writing.
"When you write lyrics, let it come from the emotions you're feeling. It makes it even more meaningful when you base them off an emotion." She said. Hikari was careful in taking notes
On the other side of the Institute, Gio and Katsumi were rounding up their band to talk to them about something.
"What is it?" Kuroko angrily asked as he sat down on the ground. Jona, who was another member of their band stepped inside the rehearsal room.
"I was going to go on a date and I cancelled because of this. This better be good or you won't get to see the sun ever again." Jona threatened. Katsumi hid behind Gio while cowering in fear. Gio sighed and redirected their attention back to the topic on hand.
"We found a lyricist. and we have to recruit her." Gio said. Kuroko's attention was caught.
"Did you say 'her'?" He asked. Gio looked at Katsumi and smiled.
"Yes, it's a girl. Besides, we need more girls here in our band. I don't want to be stuck in a boy band." Katsumi said jokingly. Jona quickly looked at Katsumi menacingly.
"I was joking." Katsumi said in his defense. Gio cleared his throat to bring their attention back.
"Kuroko already met this one." Gio said. Kuroko looked up and met Gio's eyes. He suddenly realized who he meant.
"Oh no way. You mean that mute girl?" Kuroko interjected. Gio looked at Katsumi and smiled. Jona was confused about the situation. She was the only one who hadn't met Hikari yet.
"Hey, who is this chick? and why am I the only one who hasn't met her yet?" Jona said. Katsumi put his hand on Jona's shoulder.
"Don't worry, we all haven't officially met her. We don't even know her name yet but I had this feeling in my gut that she's the one we're looking for." He said. Jona sighed in disbelief and quickly sent a punch to Katsumi's stomach. He fell to the ground as he clutched his stomach.
"You're not even sure if this girl is going to join us? What the hell! You should've discussed this first, dumbass!" Jona said. Katsumi looked at Gio for help. Gio just shrugged and faced Jona and Kuroko.
"She'll join us." Gio said. Between Gio and Katsumi, Gio was the one who was sure of anything he says. He's never said anything wrong ever since they knew each other. On the other hand, Katsumi was the one who would believe in his intuition and always get everything wrong. He doesn't mean any harm, he just doesn't understand how much bad luck he has. Kuroko sighed and got up from the floor.
"Fine, make her join." He said, and he walked away. When he was far enough, he took out Hikari's ID card and stared at it for a long time. He thought about her and how she got into the institute knowing she was mute. He understood that she couldn't sing, but maybe she could play an instrument or as Katsumi and Gio mentioned, she can write lyrics. Unconsciously, Kuroko dragged himself to the G# building where he could see Hikari.
"What am I doing here?" He asked himself. As he was turning back to leave, he saw Gio and Katsumi on their way. It was too late for him to hide and Katsumi saw him.
"Hey Kuroko! You're here to ask the girl to join our band, right?" He said. Kuroko looked away and didn't answer. Gio knew why he was here. He just kept quiet and they waited by the hall outside Hikari's room.
"Alright, that's it for today. See you tomorrow." Ms. Kanna ended her class and all of the students started to fix their stuff. Hikari put her notebook in her bag when suddenly a girl from her class appeared in front of her.
"Hey there." She said with a smile. Hikari didn't know her yet but she smiled and waved her hand. When Ms. Kanna left the room, the girl in front of her stopped smiling and immediately changed her whole attitude.
"I guess we're going to have fun now that we have a mute girl in our class." She said. Hikari didn't understand why she suddenly changed her attitude towards her but she already knew that she was there to bully her. Hikari immediately took her bags and stood up but was immediately blocked by the mean girl.
"Where are you going?" She asked, tauntingly. A few other girls followed her lead and blocked Hikari's way. Hikari was going through the first stage of her panic attack. She was trying to stay calm and assess the situation. Just then, the mean girl pushed her things out of her hands. Her notebook feel to the ground and she immediately bent down to pick it up. As she grabbed her notebook, the mean girl stepped on her hand.
"What's so special about your notebook, mute girl?" She asked. Even though she was in pain, Hikari took the notebook and clutched it to her chest. Without even thinking, she ran out of the room.
"Here she comes." Katsumi said as Hikari ran towards the exit. Before they could talk to her, she ran past them without even looking back. All of the boys were dumbfounded. Kuroko took a peek in the room and saw the girls laughing about something. He knew what they were like. He already guessed that she must've been bullied. The mean girl who bullied Hikari came out and saw Kuroko.
"Hey Kuroko, what are you doing here? Are you here to ask me to be your lyricist?" She asked. Kuroko knew this girl well. Her name was Takami Rin. She was an aspiring lyricist but she was mean and would often bring people down so she can be on top. One of the traits that Kuroko hated the most. Rin tried to latch on to Kuroko's arm but he wasn't interested. He pushed her hand away and he followed after Hikari.
"Where'd she go?" He asked himself. He went out to the far side of the building where he thought he saw Hikari running to. The hall ended into the piano room and he thought she must've entered the room and hid there. He slowly opened the door and looked around the room. Hikari was behind the piano, hugging her knees and she had her earphones on. Kuroko was walking slowly as not to startle her.
"Hey…" He said softly. Hikari couldn't hear him. To cope with her anxiety, she puts on her earphones and plays music up to the loudest her phone could go. Kuroko stood behind her and noticed her phone. She was listening to a song entitled "Sunflower Promise" by an artist named Black Moon. Kuroko was reluctant upon approaching Hikari. He decided to leave her alone when he bumped into the piano causing a string of sound to come out. Hikari whipped her head in his direction and Kuroko was unable to hide.
Hikari took out her earphones and looked at Kuroko. He noticed that her eyes were red. Hikari looked away from Kuroko. She was still cautious of all the people in this new environment. Seeing as she was already targeted for bullying on her first day. Hikari stood up from the floor and decided to walk out of the piano room. Kuroko wanted to stop her and comfort her but he just didn't know how.
"Hey!" A loud voice came from behind Kuroko. He turned to see Gio and Katsumi by the door of the piano room. Katsumi flashed a smile at Hikari to which she smiled in return.
"My name is Katsumi and this is Gio. Nice to meet you…" Katsumi let out his hand for a handshake. He trailed his last word to indicate that he was asking for Hikari's name. Without a second thought, Hikari took his hand and shook it while lowering her head. She pulled out her ID card and showed it to the two.
"Your name is Hikari… right?" Gio made sure. Hikari nodded and flashed a smile.
"Nice to meet you, Hikari. Anyway, we were looking for you." Gio said. Hikari tilted her head and raised her eyebrow. What do they mean? She thought to herself.
"As you know, the Institute allows the students to form their own bands given that they have the right people to form it. We have a band as well. I'm the bassist and singer and Katsumi here is the drummer. That guy behind you is our lead guitarist and we have another member that also plays the guitar." Gio said. Hikari looked behind her and gave an inquisitive look at Kuroko.
"Anyway, we wanted you to join our band to become our lyricist." Katsumi interjected. Hikari looked down at her feet, trying to make a decision. She took out a piece of paper from her notebook and scribbled something on it. After she was done, she turned the paper around to show Gio and Katsumi.
"I'm sorry but I don't think I'm good enough to write songs for you." Katsumi read out loud. They looked at each other for confirmation. Kuroko walked up to the two boys and looked at the note that Hikari wrote.
"It's okay. We're not that good in playing either. We're just starting off and maybe you can fit in well with us." Gio reassured her. Hikari was reluctant about joining. She didn't know these people and she's afraid that she'll get bullied again. Kuroko saw the reluctance in her eyes and tried his best to ease her worries.
"Don't worry, I can be a little defensive at times but we mean no harm. These nerds might be more open and expressive so you won't have a hard time fitting in." Kuroko said. Gio and Katsumi looked at him in disbelief. They couldn't believe that the cold and arrogant Kuroko was making an effort to let someone in their band. They all looked at Hikari for an answer. She flipped the torn page again and wrote something on the other side.
"Will it be alright with you if I don't play any instrument or that I don't speak?" She wrote. Gio and Katsumi smiled at her.
"Of course it's alright. It'd be better if we had someone in our group that's quiet." Katsumi joked. Kuroko elbowed him and he stopped. Hikari looked at the three boys who were trying their best to make her join their band. They put in a lot of effort by chasing after her and reassuring her that everything will be fine. She decided to accept their offer. She scribbled down on an empty space in the paper.
"Then I accept." She wrote. Gio and Katsumi smiled at each other. The corner on Kuroko's lips twitched but he immediately covered his face. Katsumi took Hikari's hand and pulled her outside the piano room.
"C'mon! We'll take you to our rehearsal room." He said as he dragged Hikari all the way outside of the building.
"Slow down, Katsumi. You're going to scare her." Gio followed after them. Kuroko was just walking behind them, thinking of the possibilities now that they have a lyricist in their band. As everyone already knew, their band was already popular when it was just Gio making the songs, but he thought of the future of their band. What could Hikari bring to the table?